Gone, Forgotten, And Now Remembered
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Contents
"Gone, Forgotten, and Now Remembered" by Frank Ramirez
"Saints, Sinners, Salvation" by John Fitzgerald
Gone, Forgotten, and Now Remembered
by Frank Ramirez
Weeping may linger for the night, but joy comes with the morning -- Psalm 30:5
For many decades the wretchedly poor in 19th century Denver might despair in the dark hours of the night, but come morning they might well discover joy in the morning, as parcels of food and coal mysteriously found their way to their doorsteps.
This angel of mercy was a former slave who because of the implicit racism of her day would her entire life be limited to the most menial of job opportunities and its accompanying poverty. Nevertheless this instilled in her not bitterness, but a passionate love and a great concern for others.
She performed many of her works at night not only because she was humble and unassuming but also because she worried that poor whites might have felt humiliated to discover that an even poorer black woman was the one looking out for them.
Nobody knows what year Julia Greeley, a slave from Hannibal, Missouri, was born. Estimates range from 1833 to 1848. It is known that she died in 1918, and that even though no official announcement of her passing was made prior to her funeral Mass, it took five hours for all those who lined up to view her body lying in state, so that all could take their turn to honor her. Julia Greeley had made that extraordinary an impact on all the lives she touched.
The details are unclear, but whether the slavemaster was whipping her or her mother, it was the very young Julia who lost an eye during the cruel torture. Despite the debilitating cruelty of slavery, Julia did not harbor hatred in her soul, but dedicated her non-working hours to serving others she considered less fortunate than herself.
Like millions of other slaves, she was freed following the Civil War. She worked for various families in Missouri, Wyoming, and New Mexico before settling in 1878 for good in Denver, Colorado. One of the people she worked for many years for was Julia Gilpin, the wife of the first territorial governor of Colorado, and during that time she was baptized into the Roman Catholic Church. She practiced her faith daily, going to Mass and receiving communion nearly every morning.
Afterwards she worked as a cook, a house cleaner, and provided care for children.
Julia was familiar by sight to many in Denver, known for her floppy hat, simple clothes, and a red wagon that she pulled behind her, which she used to transport the things she bought (from a salary that was never larger than ten to twelve dollars a month) for the poor. What she couldn’t afford to buy she discovered or begged for, encouraging others to donate things for the destitute.
Once, having heard of a family that desperately needed a baby carriage and coming another person with one they didn’t need, she entreated them to share it, and saw to it that the carriage made it to the family that needed it. Some say that she could be seen on occasion with a mattress strapped over her back, bent over, carrying the precious object to leave on yet another doorstep.
Julia did not discriminate when it came to serving others, but treated everyone equally. One of her special ministries involved visiting the twenty different firehouses scattered across Denver, leaving behind tracts and providing encouragement to those involved in that dangerous profession. She was always welcome.
Julia was often seen dabbing with a hankerchief at her destroyed eye which oozed constantly. She considered herself unattractive, and only one photo survives, holding a young child for whom she felt a special attraction. According to the story, she arrived at one home to clean and noticed Catholic artifacts on the wall. She asked the wife why there were no children in the home and was told that the couple’s one child had died. Julia said there would be a child born to them within the year. She allowed herself to be photographed with that child, although much of her face is hidden by her hat.
On another occasion she met with a doctor who had just told a patient that her cancer was so widespread there was nothing he could do about it. She sent the doctor back to pray with the patient, who went into remission.
Her death came without warning, following a very brief illness, Though she never married, and had no relatives as far as anyone knew, hundreds came to her funeral, and honors came from many quarters. However, as the decades passed her memory faded. In recent years her memory has been revived as she was chosen by the archdiocese of Denver as part of the Year of Mercy celebrated by the Roman Catholic Church in 2016. A biography, a short documentary, and a special icon were commissioned for a woman, who, while not officially a saint, was certainly saintly.
(Want to know more. See the short documentary “Julia Greeley - Our Model of Mercy” at https://vimeo.com/151101683, or visit the Julia Greeley site at www.juliagreeley.org.)
Frank Ramirez is a native of Southern California and is the senior pastor of the Union Center Church of the Brethren near Nappanee, Indiana. Frank has served congregations in Los Angeles, California; Elkhart, Indiana; and Everett, Pennsylvania. He and his wife Jennie share three adult children, all married, and three grandchildren. He enjoys writing, reading, exercise, and theater.
* * *
Saints, Sinners, Salvation
by John Fitzgerald
Acts 9:1-6 (7-20)
One of the misconceptions we have about scripture is that saints described in pages of God’s Word are uniquely holy and dedicated to God. We feel like there is an inadequacy on our part in dedication to the Living Lord when compared with folks found in biblical literature.
This common belief that scriptural heroes are somehow superior to us in morality and lifestyle is shown to be false when examining the following list:
The first six verses of Act 9 portray Paul as bent upon seeing that persons who have adopted the new Christian faith will receive punishment. Paul is eager that those who follow Jesus will be placed in a prison cell at Jerusalem.
It is only as a light from heaven flashes down upon Paul and his party while traveling from Jerusalem to Damascus does a major change in his attitude take place. Paul experiences the voice of Jesus raising an accusation, ‘'Saul (Paul), Saul, who do you persecute me?” (verse 5).
The remainder of Act 9 details how Paul converted to Christian faith after this amazing counter with a Living Lord. The Apostle went on to be a great missionary for Christ Jesus. Paul remains as a towering example of what can happen when encounter Jesus in a personal way.
The lesson here is that no one is far removed from God. We can be headed in the wrong direction like Paul or so many others found in scripture. Jesus can come into our life and completely rearrange our life’s direction if we remain open to Him. Thank God for Salvation from the Son of God!
Some one has said, “the church is not a museum for saints, but fellowship of sinners.” May our church put this statement into practice.
John Fitzgerald lives in Leesburg, Ohio, with his wife Carolyn and has served as pastor at the Leesburg Friends Meeting for the past 27 years. Cornfield Cathedral (Fairway Press, 2013) is the second book authored by Pastor Fitzgerald. John has earned a Master's of Ministry Degree from the Earlham School of Religion in Richmond, Indiana.
*****************************************
StoryShare, April 10, 2016, issue.
Copyright 2016 by CSS Publishing Company, Inc., Lima, Ohio.
All rights reserved. Subscribers to the StoryShare service may print and use this material as it was intended in sermons, in worship and classroom settings, in brief devotions, in radio spots, and as newsletter fillers. No additional permission is required from the publisher for such use by subscribers only. Inquiries should be addressed to permissions@csspub.com or to Permissions, CSS Publishing Company, Inc., 5450 N. Dixie Highway, Lima, Ohio 45807.
"Gone, Forgotten, and Now Remembered" by Frank Ramirez
"Saints, Sinners, Salvation" by John Fitzgerald
Gone, Forgotten, and Now Remembered
by Frank Ramirez
Weeping may linger for the night, but joy comes with the morning -- Psalm 30:5
For many decades the wretchedly poor in 19th century Denver might despair in the dark hours of the night, but come morning they might well discover joy in the morning, as parcels of food and coal mysteriously found their way to their doorsteps.
This angel of mercy was a former slave who because of the implicit racism of her day would her entire life be limited to the most menial of job opportunities and its accompanying poverty. Nevertheless this instilled in her not bitterness, but a passionate love and a great concern for others.
She performed many of her works at night not only because she was humble and unassuming but also because she worried that poor whites might have felt humiliated to discover that an even poorer black woman was the one looking out for them.
Nobody knows what year Julia Greeley, a slave from Hannibal, Missouri, was born. Estimates range from 1833 to 1848. It is known that she died in 1918, and that even though no official announcement of her passing was made prior to her funeral Mass, it took five hours for all those who lined up to view her body lying in state, so that all could take their turn to honor her. Julia Greeley had made that extraordinary an impact on all the lives she touched.
The details are unclear, but whether the slavemaster was whipping her or her mother, it was the very young Julia who lost an eye during the cruel torture. Despite the debilitating cruelty of slavery, Julia did not harbor hatred in her soul, but dedicated her non-working hours to serving others she considered less fortunate than herself.
Like millions of other slaves, she was freed following the Civil War. She worked for various families in Missouri, Wyoming, and New Mexico before settling in 1878 for good in Denver, Colorado. One of the people she worked for many years for was Julia Gilpin, the wife of the first territorial governor of Colorado, and during that time she was baptized into the Roman Catholic Church. She practiced her faith daily, going to Mass and receiving communion nearly every morning.
Afterwards she worked as a cook, a house cleaner, and provided care for children.
Julia was familiar by sight to many in Denver, known for her floppy hat, simple clothes, and a red wagon that she pulled behind her, which she used to transport the things she bought (from a salary that was never larger than ten to twelve dollars a month) for the poor. What she couldn’t afford to buy she discovered or begged for, encouraging others to donate things for the destitute.
Once, having heard of a family that desperately needed a baby carriage and coming another person with one they didn’t need, she entreated them to share it, and saw to it that the carriage made it to the family that needed it. Some say that she could be seen on occasion with a mattress strapped over her back, bent over, carrying the precious object to leave on yet another doorstep.
Julia did not discriminate when it came to serving others, but treated everyone equally. One of her special ministries involved visiting the twenty different firehouses scattered across Denver, leaving behind tracts and providing encouragement to those involved in that dangerous profession. She was always welcome.
Julia was often seen dabbing with a hankerchief at her destroyed eye which oozed constantly. She considered herself unattractive, and only one photo survives, holding a young child for whom she felt a special attraction. According to the story, she arrived at one home to clean and noticed Catholic artifacts on the wall. She asked the wife why there were no children in the home and was told that the couple’s one child had died. Julia said there would be a child born to them within the year. She allowed herself to be photographed with that child, although much of her face is hidden by her hat.
On another occasion she met with a doctor who had just told a patient that her cancer was so widespread there was nothing he could do about it. She sent the doctor back to pray with the patient, who went into remission.
Her death came without warning, following a very brief illness, Though she never married, and had no relatives as far as anyone knew, hundreds came to her funeral, and honors came from many quarters. However, as the decades passed her memory faded. In recent years her memory has been revived as she was chosen by the archdiocese of Denver as part of the Year of Mercy celebrated by the Roman Catholic Church in 2016. A biography, a short documentary, and a special icon were commissioned for a woman, who, while not officially a saint, was certainly saintly.
(Want to know more. See the short documentary “Julia Greeley - Our Model of Mercy” at https://vimeo.com/151101683, or visit the Julia Greeley site at www.juliagreeley.org.)
Frank Ramirez is a native of Southern California and is the senior pastor of the Union Center Church of the Brethren near Nappanee, Indiana. Frank has served congregations in Los Angeles, California; Elkhart, Indiana; and Everett, Pennsylvania. He and his wife Jennie share three adult children, all married, and three grandchildren. He enjoys writing, reading, exercise, and theater.
* * *
Saints, Sinners, Salvation
by John Fitzgerald
Acts 9:1-6 (7-20)
One of the misconceptions we have about scripture is that saints described in pages of God’s Word are uniquely holy and dedicated to God. We feel like there is an inadequacy on our part in dedication to the Living Lord when compared with folks found in biblical literature.
This common belief that scriptural heroes are somehow superior to us in morality and lifestyle is shown to be false when examining the following list:
- Remember that Abraham was too old
- Noah had an alcohol problem
- Isaac was a daydreamer
- Jacob was a liar
- Leah was perceived as ugly
- Joseph was an abused child
- Moses had a stuttering problem
- Gideon was afraid
- Sampson was a womanizer
- Rahab was a prostitute
- Jeremiah and Timothy were too young
- David had an adulterous affair
- Elijah was suicidal
- Isaiah preached naked
- Jonah ran from God
- Job went bankrupt
- John the Baptist had a steady diet of bugs
- Peter denied Christ 3 times
- The Lord’s disciples fell asleep while praying
- Martha worried about everything
- The Samaritan woman had several husbands
- Zaccheus was too short
- Timothy had an ulcer
The first six verses of Act 9 portray Paul as bent upon seeing that persons who have adopted the new Christian faith will receive punishment. Paul is eager that those who follow Jesus will be placed in a prison cell at Jerusalem.
It is only as a light from heaven flashes down upon Paul and his party while traveling from Jerusalem to Damascus does a major change in his attitude take place. Paul experiences the voice of Jesus raising an accusation, ‘'Saul (Paul), Saul, who do you persecute me?” (verse 5).
The remainder of Act 9 details how Paul converted to Christian faith after this amazing counter with a Living Lord. The Apostle went on to be a great missionary for Christ Jesus. Paul remains as a towering example of what can happen when encounter Jesus in a personal way.
The lesson here is that no one is far removed from God. We can be headed in the wrong direction like Paul or so many others found in scripture. Jesus can come into our life and completely rearrange our life’s direction if we remain open to Him. Thank God for Salvation from the Son of God!
Some one has said, “the church is not a museum for saints, but fellowship of sinners.” May our church put this statement into practice.
John Fitzgerald lives in Leesburg, Ohio, with his wife Carolyn and has served as pastor at the Leesburg Friends Meeting for the past 27 years. Cornfield Cathedral (Fairway Press, 2013) is the second book authored by Pastor Fitzgerald. John has earned a Master's of Ministry Degree from the Earlham School of Religion in Richmond, Indiana.
*****************************************
StoryShare, April 10, 2016, issue.
Copyright 2016 by CSS Publishing Company, Inc., Lima, Ohio.
All rights reserved. Subscribers to the StoryShare service may print and use this material as it was intended in sermons, in worship and classroom settings, in brief devotions, in radio spots, and as newsletter fillers. No additional permission is required from the publisher for such use by subscribers only. Inquiries should be addressed to permissions@csspub.com or to Permissions, CSS Publishing Company, Inc., 5450 N. Dixie Highway, Lima, Ohio 45807.
